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Hanson off to another slow start

Defending champ six strokes back after 1st round of city championship

By Brad CochiTimes-Call Sports

Posted:
07/13/2012 11:10:01 PM MDT

Updated:
07/13/2012 11:11:08 PM MDT

LONGMONT -- Chad Hanson won the city golf championship with a miraculous day three performance last year. After a rough first day at the 2012 Longmont Men's City Golf Championship, he may have to do it again to repeat.

Hanson birdied the 9th and 14th at the par-70 Twin Peaks Golf Course on Friday but struggled with his driver and putter all day, collecting bogeys and finishing with a first-round 74. His rough day put him six shots behind leader Bill Moore, who carded an impressive 68.

"If you don't putt well and you don't feel good, you're kind of fighting it all the way around," Hanson said. "I was just a little unsure. I was kind of scrapping it around, hitting out from behind trees and getting it up near the green. I just made a bunch of bogeys and three-putted a couple times. When you do that, you're on the ropes."

Hanson was six strokes off the lead going into the second round last year. Trailing by two, he shot a 66 in the third round at Ute Creek Golf Course to win the title by six strokes.

This year, he'll adopt the same strategy as he did last.

"I was further back last year. I just kept it good enough to where I gained a shot or two and it was manageable," said Hanson, who also won in 2004. "If you're within five shots going into the last day, you've got a shot. If you're more than five shots out, it's tough."

For Hanson to make a late run, Moore will have to cool off. On 11, Moore drove it down the fairway, lipped out the approach shot and tapped in for birdie. That's how

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much of his 2-under day went.

"I felt OK. I was rolling the putts pretty well but I wasn't really getting them to drop," said Moore, who won two years ago. "I got rolling on the back nine. My short game felt really good today. I had a bunch of lip-outs so there's room for improvement."

Moore will have to hold off good friend Jonathan Chavez, who won in 2009 and regularly finishes in the top five. He turned in a 70 on Friday.

Two shots behind Moore, Chavez found a rhythm and birdied 5, 6 and 7 in row. But he ran into trouble when he had a 30-foot putt for eagle on 14 but three-putted for par and struggled again on 15.

"I played well but, like other people, I feel like I left a lot of strokes out there still," Chavez said. "I had one bad hole on the back nine that kind of took the wheels off a little bit and I had a couple three-putts. Bill is a good player and a good friend of mine so I hope to be in the final group with him on Sunday."

Both Moore and Chavez have been club champions at Ute Creek Golf Course, where the final day of the tournament will be played. Ute Creek is also Hanson's preferred course.

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